Monday 21^st September 2020

Member for Eastern Victoria and Parliamentary Secretary for Creative Industries Harriet Shing today announced survival grants for local live music venues and new grants to protect music jobs on stage and behind the scenes.

Ms Shing said the latest grants and initiatives will help local music venues, businesses, musicians and other music industry workers get back on their feet and ready for a robust COVID Normal future.

Kay Street Entertainment is one of 106 recipients across the state that will share in grants totalling $9 million through in the first tranche of the Victorian Live Music Venues program.

The program supports venues, with a capacity of 50 to 1,200 people, that have a solid reputation for presenting original live music and demonstrate best practice in business operations.

The grants will support Kay Street Entertainment, which has been closed since March, to cover urgent overheads and put COVID-safe measures in place.

They may also assist venues to reopen and host events providing employment opportunities for artists, promoters, technicians and more, offsetting costs while patron caps are in place.

Under Victoria’s roadmaps for reopening, indoor live music venues can reopen at the Last Step with density quotients and patron caps in place. Patron caps will be lifted when the state moves to COVID Normal.

Local musicians, music businesses and music industry workers may also be eligible to apply for grants through the new Victorian Music Industry Recovery program.

The program offers grants of between $4,000 and $50,000 to support artists, managers, promoters, bookers, road crew and other workers to create new music, undertake professional and business development activities and develop new COVID-Safe ways of working.

Recognising that summer is usually a bumper period for the music industry, the program will focus on activities taking place from December onwards. It includes dedicated streams for First Peoples and Deaf and Disabled applicants. Applications will open at noon on Monday, 21 September and close at 5pm, Thursday 22 October 2020.

The full list of music venues supported through tranche 1 of the Victorian Live Music Venues program is available at creative.vic.gov.au. Guidelines for the new Victorian Music Industry Recovery program are also available on this site.

Quotes attributable to Member for Eastern Victoria and Parliamentary Secretary for Creative Industries Harriet Shing

“Music venues are a vital part of The Latrobe Valley’s culture and economy and by helping to secure them for the future, as well as supporting our music workers, we’ll help the industry bounce back when it’s safe to do so.”

Quotes attributable to Minister for Creative Industries Martin Foley

“Our music scene is much loved across the state and envied the world over. This support will protect our grassroots venues, save jobs and music businesses, and keep local music playing well beyond this pandemic.”